The Buffet Crampon Group is awarded the CDC Entreprises’ SME Trophy category «Capital Development Financing»

During its annual Forum, Philippe Braidy (Chairman of CDC Entreprises) and Pascal Lagarde (Managing Director of CDC Entreprises) announced the winners of the 2nd CDC Entreprises Trophy. This award honours 8 investment teams affiliated with CDC Enterprises, and 3 companies.

« We are very proud to be awarded this trophy by CDC Enterprises » comments Antoine Beaussant, President of the Directoire of the Buffet Crampon Group.

Buffet Crampon which was acquired by way of an MBO by the Argos Wityu capital investment group in 2005, pursues an active strategy of external growth. With its acquisition in 2010 of W. Schreiber and J. Keilwerth, it became N°2 worldwide for the manufacture of wind instruments.

About Groupe Buffet Crampon

Founded in 1825 in Paris, Buffet Crampon is one of the largest musical instrument manufacturers and number one in the world for the professional clarinet. With its three brands, Buffet Crampon, Antoine Courtois created in 1803 and Besson founded 1837, the Group is active in the segments of woodwind (clarinets, bass clarinets, oboes, bassoons, saxophones) and brass (tubas, euphoniums, saxhorns, trumpets, cornets, altos, bugles, trombones).

Benefiting from a worldwide distribution network with subsidiaries in the United States and Japan, the Group achieved in 2009 a turnover of 53 million Euros, 92% of the instruments are exported.

Argos Wityu is an independent European private equity group with offices in Paris, Milan and Geneva. Since its creation in 1989, Argos Wityu has carried out more than 50 transactions focusing on management buy-outs (MBO) and buy-ins (MBI) in small and medium companies.

Argos Wityu typically takes majority stakes ranging from €5m to €50m in companies with revenue of €20m to €400m. The firm has developed a track record of unusual, complex and off-market transactions where the firm’s combination of local presence and international experience is able to add value to the small and medium-sized businesses it invests in.

At the end of 2010, Argos Wityu raised its new fund, Euroknights VI, at the hard cap of €400m. The firm has assets under management of €750m allocated to its lower mid market buyout funds and Argos Expansion, the firm’s minority equity and expansion capital fund.